Feature Companies:

Organisations:

Ombudsman warning on legal expenses insurance

A YouGov survey commissioned by the UK’s legal ombudsman reveals that 74% of respondents didn’t know or were unsure what financial cover their legal expenses insurance provided, while 89% didn’t know or were unsure which legal services were excluded under the terms of the policy.

The findings have prompted the UK’s chief legal ombudsman, Adam Sampson, to warn consumers to be more vigilant following a series of cases in which customers were sold complex and confusing products that they often struggled to understand.

In his latest annual report, Mr Sampson refers to a series of case studies in which customers had brought their complaint to his organisation after losing money on unrealistic “no win, no fee” promises, dubious fixed-fee services and confusing legal insurance policies.

Having noted the damage done to the financial sector’s reputation by the mis-selling of complicated products such as Payment Protection Insurance, Mr Sampson warns that it could be disastrous if the legal sector was to follow suit.